Book Reviews | Chapter 16

Old Hickory’s Revenge

Steve Berry’s latest thriller puts Andrew Jackson at the center of a historical mystery

By Chris Scott | July 12, 2011

July 12, 2011 For the first time, international best-selling author Steve Berry has set one of his Cotton Malone thrillers in the United States, and it has a Tennessee connection. When Malone sets out to defeat a band of modern-day pirates, he must first decipher a clue left by Andrew Jackson. The Jefferson Key opens with an attack on Old Hickory and rushes at breakneck speed through some of the dimmer recesses of American history, delivering an extra-large order of conspiracy, double-crosses, and wild action.

A Love Letter to Charlotte

In his gorgeous new book, Michael Sims tells the story of how E. B. White came to write Charlotte’s Web

By Serenity Gerbman | July 11, 2011

July 11, 2011 Since its publication in 1952, Charlotte’s Web by E.B. White has sold more than forty-five million copies and continues to be counted among the most beloved and bestselling children’s books of all time. In his beautifully written, thoughtful, and thought-provoking new book The Story of Charlotte’s Web: E.B. White’s Eccentric Life in Nature and the Birth of an American Classic, Michael Sims views the life of E.B. White through the prism of the classic he created. Sims will discuss and sign The Story of Charlotte’s Web on July 16 as part of the Salon@615 series. Arrive at 10 a.m. for a free continental breakfast followed by the reading.

Time Out of Mind

David Halperin’s first novel is a fantastical tale of gypsies, UFOs, and more than a little autobiography

By Paul V. Griffith | July 8, 2011

July 8, 2011 UFO fetishists have long seen a connection between extraterrestrial craft and the holy scriptures. Websites, blogs, books, and documentaries have been devoted to the idea that biblical visions may refer to unidentified flying objects, but debut novelist David Halperin is the first to use such connections as a plot device. In Journal of a UFO Investigator, Halperin, a retired religious-studies professor, effectively weaves the UFO phenomenon together with issues of faith, loss, and the pain of growing up. David Halperin will appear at the 2011 Southern Festival of Books, held October 14-16 in Nashville.

Requiring No Motive

The characters in Adam Ross’s new story collection confront the human impulse to cruelty

By Maria Browning | July 5, 2011

July 5, 2011 In Ladies and Gentlemen, the follow-up to his critically acclaimed novel, Mr. Peanut, Adam Ross employs beautiful, glittering prose to tell tales of boys and girls behaving badly. Ross will discuss and sign the story collection at the Nashville Public Library on July 5 at 6:15 p.m., as part of the the Salon@615 series.

The Hopeful Pessimist

A biography of famed attorney Clarence Darrow describes a man of conflicting alliances and steadfast principles

By Paul V. Griffith | July 1, 2011

July 1, 2011 In Clarence Darrow: American Iconoclast, historian Andrew E. Kersten focuses on the legendary attorney’s inconsistencies and his uncanny ability to reconcile sometimes contradictory impulses. Darrow championed many unpopular causes, dumbfounding his progressive friends and empowering his conservative enemies, but he remained at heart an attorney of the people, concerned more with preserving individual liberties and tilting at institutional windmills than with maintaining a consistent philosophy. Kersten shows Darrow to be a gifted jurist who isn’t afraid to get his hands muddy in the service of his clients.

Cherokee Ghost Story

Sonia Gensler’s first YA novel is set against a suspenseful background of mystery, murder, and miscegenation

By Tina LoTufo | June 28, 2011

June 28, 2011 As Sonia Gensler’s new historical novel The Revenant opens, Willemina Hammond is running away from boarding school in Columbia, Tennessee, to escape her family’s expectations. Willie assumes the identity of a graduating schoolmate and heads to Oklahoma in her place, but she never dreams that her new job as a teacher at the Cherokee Female Seminary will lead her on a chilling journey into the supernatural. Sonia Gensler will read from and sign copies of The Revenant at Borders Books in Clarksville on July 3 at 2 p.m.

Camilla and the Caterpillars

By Frances Figart, illustrated by Matt Brass
Smokies Life
68 pages
$14.95

A young girl’s encounter with an extraordinary caterpillar in the Great Smoky Mountains leads her and her family on a quest to plant a national park right in their own backyard.

This environmentally themed chapter book for ages 6 through 11 introduces young readers to important ecological concepts including habitat loss and the interdependence of native species and offers a compelling grassroots solution through native-plant gardening that invites anyone to take part in addressing the growing biodiversity crisis.

~the publisher